CHAPTER 263

A few minutes later, the old woman slowly recovered her senses.

While the old woman was unconscious, Leigh shook her head sadly at Madeline, making sure to do it out of Alex's sight.

Madeline understood what Leigh meant, and her heart was heavy.

Alex came all the way back to see his grandmother, but the latter didn't have many days left.

When Alex's grandmother passed away in the future, what would Alex do?

The highest possibility was for him to return to his biological father and stepmother.

When Alex's grandmother, Belle Butler, was still alive, Alex's stepmother had boldly abused him. If Belle passed away, wouldn't Alex's stepmother treat him even worse?

Madeline had her own children too, so when she imagined Alex's life going forward, she felt especially sympathetic and upset.

Meanwhile, Buddy was startled as he gripped Sebastian's and Madeline's hands. His small body leaned tightly against Sebastian's embrace as his black eyes stared unblinkingly at Belle and Alex.

When Belle's breathing returned to normal, Leigh called over two bodyguards so that they could carry her into the bedroom and place the old woman on the bed.

Belle was quite embarrassed. "My body isn't working as well as it used to. You're all esteemed guests,

but I can't even give you a proper welcome."

Madeline comforted her by saying, "It's okay, your health comes first."

"You sent Alex all the way home for me, but my welcome was insufficient. I'm so sorry for that." The old woman looked at Alex. "Alex, go to the fields and fetch your Uncle Aaron and Aunt Olivia. Ask them to come back quickly to serve the guests properly."

"Grandma…" Alex gripped her hand as longing filled his eyes, reluctant to leave.

"Be good." Belle smiled warmly at him. "I'm okay now, so go as fast as you can."

Not willing to disobey the old woman's orders, Alex turned and said to Leigh, "Miss Shefford, please help me take care of my grandmother."

Leigh loved this intelligent, brave, and resilient young boy. She caressed his head as she said, "Don't worry, leave this to me."

Alex bowed toward her, then dashed outside.

When Alex was out of earshot, Belle looked at Madeline. "Aldo's mother, I have something to ask of you…"

Madeline saw that her breaths were shallow, and it took a lot of effort for her to talk. Hence, she took a few steps forward and bent over slightly. "Please, go ahead."

"When Alex was present just now, I dared not tell him… The doctor said that my body isn't holding up, and I don't have much time left…" Tears welled up in Belle's eyes. "I only have two sons; my eldest son and his wife are good people, but they have three children already. The wife is in ill health, so it might be too much of a burden for them to take care of Alex too."

She continued, "However, with a situation like this, if I let my second son and his wife take care of Alex, I cannot rest in peace. Thus, would it be possible for you to take Alex with you when you go back to Elsenburg? I want to ask my second son and his wife to give Alex some money so that he can hold onto them. If not, when I die, they probably won't even give Alex a single cent…"

As the old woman spoke, her tears fell silently.

At that moment, Madeline especially hated Alex's father.

It was such a poor mountain village, so it must be very difficult for an old woman to provide for a college student.

Alex's father struggled free of the swamp, but he tossed the son he was supposed to raise to this sickly old woman. As a result, the old woman still had to plan for her grandson's future with her frail body.

That man deserved no less than death.

She suppressed the rage inside her as she spoke gently to the old woman. "Don't worry, our Aldo and Buddy are good friends with Alex. We'll definitely help him."

"Yes!" As Buddy leaned against Sebastian's body, he said timidly, "Don't worry, Grandma. We'll definitely help Alex. I like him a lot, and he's as amazing as my own brother!"

Belle looked at him and smiled through her tears. "Alright, thank you so much. You're a good child like Alex!"

Buddy leaned in Sebastian's arms and smiled bashfully.

The old woman didn't have much energy to spare, so Madeline told her to talk less and get more rest.

About ten minutes later, Alex ran back, out of breath.

Soon, a middle-aged man who looked sincere and honest came in with a thin, middle-aged woman.

After a reserved greeting toward Sebastian and the others, they gathered around Belle and began caring for her.

Obviously, those two treated Belle very well.

The old woman insisted that Sebastian and the others stay for a meal. Madeline originally didn't want to trouble Belle's family further, but she felt that if they didn't stay for a meal, the family might feel indebted to them.

As such, she had the bodyguards bring in the gifts she had prepared, some of which included food and ingredients. Then, she and Alex's aunt cooked up a few dishes.

The Carters' house was quite simple, and its kitchen and utensils were no different. At first, she was worried that Sebastian couldn't get used to the food, but the man ate like he normally did, and nothing

was out of the ordinary.

She had an even better impression of Sebastian now.

She had spent quite a lot of time with him already, yet she couldn't find anything bad about him.

Sebastian was the most perfect man she had ever met! exclusive content.

After the meal, Belle wanted to arrange places for them to stay. This time, Madeline insisted on declining politely.

She followed the village customs and called the old woman 'Mother Belle' as she explained, "We intend on broadening our children's views for a change of pace while getting Alex home. We have pitched tents in the mountains, and we'll stay there with the children at night. The children have been wanting to camp outdoors for a long time, so this is a rare opportunity."

Since he feared that his grandmother couldn't understand, Alex explained it again to his grandmother in whispers.

When the old woman understood all this, she nodded in response. She told them that if they felt any discomfort, they were welcome to stay in the house. Even though it wasn't a huge place, it could still house a few people.

Madeline smiled as she agreed.

After both parties reached an agreement, Sebastian and the others left the Carter Residence. Naturally, Alex stayed behind.

He hadn't seen his grandmother, Uncle Aaron, and Aunt Olivia for a long time. He missed them terribly and didn't want to leave them for even a single second.

After leaving the Carter Residence, Sebastian and Madeline went to Sanguine Mountain located nearby.

Luke was right; Saunguine Mountain was beautiful.

The mountain wasn't developed at all, and just like he said, it had an original and raw beauty as wildlife teemed on it.

It was Aldo and Buddy's first time seeing a mountain like this, and everything felt new to them. This was especially the case for Buddy as he skipped at the very front. No matter what he saw, he would exclaim in surprise and happily call his parents and brother, beckoning them to see it as well.

His joy affected everyone and dissipated the sorrowful fog that had settled upon the crowd because of the matter with the Carters. Hence, everyone began to smile again.

Some of the Harts' bodyguards didn't go to the Carter Residence. Instead, they set up camp at the top of the mountain.

After getting to the mountaintop and catching sight of the tent there, Buddy joyfully went inside and rolled among the rugs laid out in the tent.